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UK Doctors Cure Type 1 Diabetes

Posted by timothy on from the that's-what-they-tell-you-anyway dept.

ayden writes "The BBC is reporting that a 61-year-old man has become the first person in the UK to be cured of type 1 diabetes thanks to a groundbreaking cell-transplant technique. More info here."

5 of 96 comments (clear)

  1. Type I == Juvenile Diabetes by Violet+Null · · Score: 3, Informative

    Unfortunately, it's a poor name. 50% of Type I diagnosises occur in people above the age of 18.

  2. Coca-cola: Toilet bowl cleaner! by denis-The-menace · · Score: 3, Informative

    I kid you not.
    It works great and it doesn't harm my septic tank!
    Leave it for an hour or overnight and flush in the morning.

    Now if pop can do that, imagine what it does inside you!
    Pepsi works too.

    --
    Obama's legacy: (N)othing (S)ecure (A)nywhere and (T)error (S)imulation (A)dministration
  3. Re:Good news! by kpearce · · Score: 3, Informative

    so one dead donor can help cure tens, maybe hundreds of afflicted patients?
    Unfortunately not. As reported here http://www.channel4.com/news/2005/03/week_2/09_ins ulin.html more than one donor is required for each transplant.

  4. Re:Good news! by Nipok+Nek · · Score: 4, Informative

    Not true - Type II is where your body isn't correctly using the insulin it has, Type I is where the body simply doesn't make enough. Anyone (including myself) who has ever "progressed" from Type II to Type I was simply mis-diagnosed in the first place, and was always Type I.

    Nipok Nek

    --
    Why choose white shoes?
  5. The Beeb got it wrong... this has been done before by Methionine · · Score: 4, Informative

    Not sure how this has been missed, but unless I'm mistaken, this is *not* the first time we've seen islet cell transplantation to correct Type I diabetes in patients with insulin-dependant diabetes mellitus (IDDM). From http://www.diabetes.org.uk/islets/trans/edmonton.h tm "The 'Edmonton' protocol is a procedure developed in Canada for transplanting healthy islet cells into people with Type 1 diabetes. The series of islet transplantations carried out by James Shapiro and his team since March 1999 has enjoyed levels of success that are unprecedented in the field of islet transplantation surgery. Since the Edmonton transplantation research trial began, 48 patients have undergone 92 islet infusions in Canada. The most recent statistics from Edmonton (January 2003) state that one year after transplantation 84 per cent of patients remain insulin free and that after three years, 89 per cent of patients are still producing insulin. Previous islet cell transplants have only succeeded in around eight per cent of cases. In addition to the work being carried out in Canada, approximately 200 patients have received islet transplants using the 'Edmonton' protocol or varients of the process in several centres worldwide. There are now almost 75 programmes planned to become activated within the next six to 12 months." Also, check this link from the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research: http://www.ahfmr.ab.ca/publications/newsletter/Sum mer00/sum00/inside/diabetes.feat.htm